[Build Review] Arakaali's Fang Ascendant (Occultist/PF). Big DPS and tattoos enable even better defenses

[pobbin] (https://pobb.in/z3av5TS1fuUb)

Introduction

• I was playing a hexblast miner with about 10c worth of gear and just did low tier maps for silver coins, making most of my money from ToTA (thank you GOATmaster). I wanted a second build that can do all content, finish the atlas, run some sanctums and bosses. I also wanted something that would be viable for a long time since I'll probably just play on Std once work gets busy again.

• Spiders are pretty much the highest dps minions. So you can invest a little bit in offense, a lot in defense, and be extremely durable while still doing very high DPS. Good spiders Ghastly Eyes are also plentiful and cheap since they're mediocre for Poison SRS. Lots of 12-passive clusters available too.

• I sniped a 20% phys-taken-as Purity of Elements Watcher's Eye for 20 divs (these are like 50d now) before I started this build. Saved up another 40 or so divs before starting. The availability of cheap +max res this league makes 100% phys-taken-as very attractive.

• The next most expensive items are Squire (13div), Amanamu (4div), cluster jewels (2x3div), Nightmare jewels (2x2div), Defiance of Destiny (3div). 11 passive clusters are quite a bit cheaper than 12 but basically the same value. I swapped clusters with almost the same prices around 3 times to patch up resistances or attributes. None of the tattoos used are particularly expensive either. Total spent around 80 divs.

• I don't have any videos because... mechanically this a very simple build to play. I only die if I let intrusive thoughts win and wonder what would happen if I didn't move while the boss channels a one-shot.

• Welcome to offer suggestions or tips.

Playstyle

1. Walk around a bit for Corpsewalker to spawn corpses.
2. Hold down Divine Ire and tap your Worms flask.
3. Now just run around and curse everything, casting Flesh Offering occasionally.
4. Everything dies. You get hit now and then and immediately heal up from the next hits like it's old Vaal Pact.

Offense

• DPS ~18M against Pinnacle bosses, ~6M Ubers. Nice to have 100% uptime and you basically run around the boss trying to stay awake.

• The Squire is about half of our damage. I'd say not necessary for unless going for super-juiced T16s, simulacrums, etc. The best thing is just the QOL from not having to swap between melee splash and multistrike. I used Dawnbreaker til like level 90 with Cloak of Flame. If you get a cheaper double taken-as Watcher's Eye that uses 2 Purity auras, you can make it work by stacking more aura reservation efficiency. Or scaling Taste of Hate effect and getting 18% taken as on the helmet. Or putting Malevolence on a blessing. Lots of options.

• Jewels are like 90% of dps scaling. You need at least 2 Ghastly Eyes with accuracy rolls. Each T1/2 flat phys or chaos damage to minions are about 5% dps. Quickening Covenant is pretty good value. Sacrificing defense and going for 3x12-passive clusters can get you to dot-cap on Pinnacle bosses.

• Setting up Tri-curse with Vixens and getting Despair everywhere is a big part of proper damage too.

• Spectres are nice for bosses. They don't really stay alive in juiced maps lol. I've been running 1 Carnage Chieftain and 1 Pale Seraphim. Arena Master would work too.

• Divergent Melee splash makes your clear very fast with the speed from Flesh Offering. Profane Bloom is pretty unnecessary in my opinion.

Defensive layers:

100% Physical damage from hits taken as elemental damage:

• 50% - Lightning Coil,

• 16% - Helmet (can be 18% with greater ichors),

• 20% - Watcher's Eye with double Purity of Elements taken-as (can be div'ed to 24%),

• 14% - Taste of Hate

73% Block:

• 22% - Red Nightmare in the Templar jewel slot with fire res tattoos

• 9% - Unnatural Instinct at Scion

• 6% - Tetsudo anointment on amulet

• 30% - The Squire

• 6% - Arcane Guarding mastery

75% Spell block:

• 28% - Blue Nightmare in Witch/Templar slot with lightning res tattoos

• 16% - Arcane Guarding nodes with Mastery

• 26% - Tempest Shield

• 5% - +1% spell block tattoos

78/78/79/77 Maximum resistances:

• +2% all max res from Honoured Tattoo of the Makanga

• 2x +1% max lightning res from Tattoo of the Valako Makanga (around the honored tattoo)

• +1% max cold res from Honoured Tattoo of the Barbarian

• +1% max fire res from Tattoo of the Ngamahu Makanga using Unnatural Instinct

• Almost no resistances on rare gear, getting a ton from Purity of Elements, Defiance of Destiny, tattoos, and cluster jewels.

• This allows me to cap chaos res from rings.

Other defense

• 100% spell suppression with Inveterate, Quickstep, Intuition, and Magebane pathing from Scion through Ranger. These nodes get you to 90%+, then a Phasing flask fills the rest.

• Take no extra damage from critical strikes - Balance of Terror. I can switch to self-casting Despair for curse immunity if it's a fucked up map.

• Defiance of Destiny is a baby bloodnotch. This essentially means you can never die to fast hits or getting offscreened by projectiles.

• Bleed removal from Pathfinder node. Corrupted blood immunity from corrupted Balance of Terror.

• Ailment immunity from Purity of Elements

• Enfeeble and Temp chains in tri-curse setup

• Flasks for phasing, poison immunity, and blind. "Gain flask charge when hit" and "Cast when full" means permaflasks especially with Pathfinder node..

Weaknesses

• If no enemies are hitting you, you don't get any life recovery from Defiance of Destiny.

• Ground bullshit. I use the Burning Ground immunity from Pantheon, but there are cold, chaos, and phys ground degen shit too. Spiders kill everything too fast so you don't get hit enough to recover life lmao.

Potential Improvements

• I should really put Malevolence on Generosity lol. Like another ~mil DPS. Off-coloring Lightning Coil is a pain.

• +1/+2 corrupted Vixen's.

• Enchants, gems, corruptions.

• Bloodnotch tech then using a Malevolence or Envy Aul's Uprising.

• Forbidden Flesh/Flame for Unholy Might or Void Beacon are like +20% DPS. But this build is jewel-slot starved as is. I could drop Quickening Covenant and a Ghastly...

• Better ghastly eye jewels and cluster jewels possible but diminishing returns. Renewal? meh.

• Awakened Multistrike gets you another few million DPS. I haven't opted for this yet.

• A big one is maybe doing Guardian+Pathfinder. Gets max block a lot easier (Red Nightmare near Templar start can give like 40% block), and the big regen is very nice to patch up a weakness. But capping spellblock is a little harder, and I'd have to either anoint Whispers of Doom, or use Anathema setup instead of Vixen's. Or use Forbidden Flesh/Flame for Unholy Authority.

• Original Sin with dual curse (dropping Despair). Way too expensive though. Same for Progenesis.

• Transcendance+Loreweave+Eternal Damnation? Would be interesting but Determination again, with Malevolence on a Blessing maybe. Not enough phys mitigation unless I go back to Dawnbreaker. A completely different build tbh.

• Divine Flesh maybe. Might be more point-efficient than the +2% max res spot, but getting another jewel slot is pain.

Lastly I'd like to thank /u/bandos_claws for ideas around defense and Spiders.